» Meet Jack the parrot who scared off gang of thieves with savage attack

Meet Jack the parrot who scared off gang of thieves with savage attack

Published: Thursday, September 16, 2010, 17:55 [IST]

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London, Sept 16 (ANI): A parrot in a pet shop in England is being hailed as a hero after it fought off a gang of thieves when they tried to make off with thousands of pounds worth of exotic animals.

Jack, an 11-month-old bird, pecked and scratched the thugs, and his attack was so ferocious that he had pieces of ripped clothing and blood on his beak, while his feathers covered Hobday's pet shop in Coventry.

Police believe that the exotic bird panicked and went on the offensive after the thieves tried to pull him from his cage.

Officers say Jack's heroics could help them trace the thieves through DNA evidence left at the scene.

"We couldn't believe it when we got into work in the morning. There was blood all over the shop and Jack was perched on top of his cage squawking like mad," the Daily Mail quoted Caroline Hobday, 49, who runs the store with her husband Andrew, 52, as saying.

"All the evidence looks like he scared the thieves away and spent the rest of the night patrolling and protecting the other animals like a guard dog.

"Jack is a feisty young bird and is fiercely protective over the other birds in the shop. We often let him fly around for exercise so he knows his way around.

"He must have given the thieves a hell of a nip because his beak is like a razor and his talons are very sharp too.

"We're very proud of him - without his actions we would have lost thousands of pounds more animals.

"The policeman told us that the blood at the scene belonged to the thieves and Jack probably scared the intruders off.

"There was a lot of blood so Jack must have really pecked them and clawed them hard," she revealed.

A trail of blood from the thieves and feathers from Jack were discovered leading to the back door where the thieves fled in agony.

"We think there must have been at least two or three thieves. It was an organised raid because they ripped out the burglar alarm and targeted the most expensive animals in the shop," she added.

The thieves, who stole three corn snakes worth 300 pounds and a 250 pounds Rosella parrot, also killed several fish by stamping on them.

They also ripped off the tail of a lizard and hurled bottles at the birdcages and turtle tanks.

"Blood was found at the scene and forensic officers will be using this as part of the investigation into this burglary," a spokeswoman for West Midlands Police said.